France's Nicolas LaPierre took pole position Saturday for Sunday's sprint race at the A1 Grand Prix at Sydney's Eastern Creek race track.
LaPierre clocked 2 minutes, 37.036 seconds over two laps in overcast conditions on the 3.93-kilometer (2.44-mile) layout, which was muddy in patches after overnight rain.
Portugal joined France on the front row of the grid after Alvara Parente qualified second with 2:37.526.
Switzerland was third-fastest when Neel Jani recorded 2:37.636, followed by Brazil's Nelson Piquet Jr., with 2:38.082 and Britain's Robbie Kerr in 2:38.122.
Qualifying was made up of four consecutive 15-minute sessions split by 10-minute breaks with teams allowed out at any point in each period.
The aggregate of the best two "flying laps'' by each team determined grid placings for Sunday's first championship race.
LaPierre smashed the qualifying record of any vehicle at Eastern Creek with a 1:18.886 lap in the first session before beating that with 1:18:150 in the next. (AP)